Sunday, October 24, 2010

What is it about the poor gents who've won The X Factor? Shayne Ward has gone a painfully long three years without releasing an album (and the previous one only got two singles issued off it, despite each one charting in the Top 10). Leon Jackson was pretty much dead on arrival. Steve Brookstein...WHO? And now there's Joe McElderry.

Last week "Ambitions," Joe's lead single off his rather amazing Wide Awake album (out tomorrow), debuted at #6 on the UK chart. That's quite a disappointing position, given that last year's X Factor runner-up/nudistOlly Murs found himself at #1 in September with "Please Don't Let Me Go."

Compounding Joe's problems is the fat that "Ambitions" has now dropped all the way to #21. Sigh. At least boy band The Wanted manage a decent entry this week with second single "Heart Vacancy," which goes in at #2. This follows their #1 hit "All Time Low," and like McElderry, the quintet's self-titled debut LP is out tomorrow in the UK.

Elsewhere, Katy Perry still hasn't worn out her welcome (though she'll never top "Teenage Dream" in my eyes) and debuts at #5 with "Firework," which she performed on The X Factor last week. And then there's Jay Sean and Nicki Minaj's utterly useless "2012 (It Ain't Over)," which goes in at #9.

I'm off to have a cry for poor Joe by listening to Wide Awake. Pick it up tomorrow—it's better than you might think!

4 Comments:

I'm utterly baffled too by the relative lack of success of Ambitions. It's a slick piece of modern pop with a killer chorus and production that adds to the original. He's a likable performer too. I know airplay has been something of a problem, but one week in the Top 20?!

Let's see how well the album goes down. Is there a nice big ballad to rescue him?

"Ambitions" is irresistible. I love Olly's single too, but Joe's is so much more joyous. It's far more deserving of the #1 spot than Bruno Mars's snooze (though I suspect Matt Cardle helped push that over the top).